Making your own pasta may take a little longer and be a little more expensive, but homemade pasta is always nicer than store bought pasta. Although seemingly difficult, it is not that hard if you have the right tools.
You will need a
asta_Machine.jpg"TARGET="_blank">pasta machine (these can be purchased at any kitchen or home wares store), a fork, a clean tea towl and a rack for drying the pasta.
You will also need 2 cups of flour, 3 large eggs and half a teaspoon of salt.
Before you begin, make sure your work surface is clean and dry. Place the flour on your table in a mound, make a shallow well in the middle and add the eggs and salt to the well. Whisk your eggs but do not disturb the flour.
Slowly combine your ingredients using a fork. Once the ingredients have been combined, use your fingertips to blend. Bring the mixture together to form a ball. If the ball feels too sticky, add a little flour. If the ball is too dry and won't hold together, add a little of the egg mixture.
Knead the dough until the mixture is smooth. Split the dough into three equally sized balls and cover with the tea towel. Leave for fifteen minutes.
Use the pasta machine to flatten the dough until it is very thin and slightly glossy looking. Your pasta machine should have a cutting adaptation that will slice your dough into pasta strands. If not, you can cut your pasta by folding the flattened dough into a square and cutting strips about one centimetre wide.
Finally, hang your pasta on a rack to dry before eating.
Once you've mastered the art of basic pasta making, you can move on to more complicated recipes like
cannelloni (using your pasta sheet instead of pre-made cannelloni shells),
smoked salmon ravioli and
coloured pasta.
